Ancient ‘trace’ in Papuan genomes suggests previously unknown expansion out of Africa
Several major studies, published today, concur that virtually all current global human populations stem from a single wave of expansion out of Africa. Yet one has found 2% of the genome in Papuan populations points to an earlier, separate dispersal event – and an extinct lineage that made it to the islands of Southeast Asia […]
Did archaic genetic variants help Melanesians adapt?
Wikimedia Commons photo by Kahuroa The Melanisians settled in the area of New Guinea, north and east of Australia. Compared with other world groups, the DNA of Melanesian populations carries some of the largest percentage of ancestry from now-extinct Neanderthals and Denisovans. A genomic study of Melanesians suggests that certain genetic variants inherited from archaic […]